Patient knowledge and expectations for functional recovery after stroke.

Objective: Understanding the causes and outcomes of stroke is important for stroke survivors and may affect their success in rehabilitation and their risk of recurrent stroke; therefore, this study was performed to assess the knowledge and expectation of functional recovery in stroke patients undergoing acute inpatient rehabilitation.

Design: Survey study of 50 consecutive stroke patients undergoing inpatient rehabilitation at a single urban rehabilitation hospital.

Results: Forty-six percent of participants were able to correctly identify whether they had sustained a cerebral infarct or hemorrhage.